Sole proprietors can only deduct their charitable contributions on the Schedule A tax form -- not from their self-employment income on Schedule C. As a result, you won't reduce your self-employment taxes. If you use Schedule A, you can't claim the standard deduction, so you should only itemize your charitable contributions if your total itemized deductions exceed your standard deduction. When you make a donation, keep a receipt that shows what you donated, when you made the donation and the organization that received the donations.

Step 1

Report the amount of cash contributions to charities on line 16 of Schedule A. List your non-cash contributions on line 17 of Schedule A. Cash contributions also include gifts made via check and credit card.

Step 2

Add the total of your charitable contributions and report the total on line 19 of Schedule A. For example, if you contributed $5,000 in cash and donated $1,000 worth of clothing, your total would be $6,000.

Step 3

Add your total charitable contributions to your other itemized deductions for the year and report the total on line 29 of Schedule A.

Step 4

Enter your total itemized deductions, including your charitable contributions, on line 40 of Form 1040. This amount lowers your taxable income for the year.

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About the Author

Mark Kennan is a writer based in the Kansas City area, specializing in personal finance and business topics. He has been writing since 2009 and has been published by "Quicken," "TurboTax," and "The Motley Fool."